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Boston bombing suspect asks court for extra attorney

Published On: Jul 15 2013 04:21:45 PM EDT

BOSTON -

Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is requesting that the court allow him to add a death-penalty specialist to his legal team.

According to the Boston Herald, Tsarnaev is requesting the court allow his taxpayer-funded defense team to add David Bruck, a lawyer who has represented one of the 1986 Pam Am Flight 72 hijackers and one of the four men serving life in prison for the 1998 bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi.

Tsarnaev, who has been hospitalized since his capture with wounds suffered in a shootout and getaway attempt, faces 30 federal charges, including using a weapon of mass destruction to kill, in connection with the April 15 twin explosions that left three people dead and more than 260 wounded.

Tsarnaev also is charged in the killing of a Massachusetts Institute of Technology police officer and the carjacking of a motorist during a getaway attempt.

He could get the death penalty if prosecutors choose to pursue it. U.S. Attorney Eric Holder has not announced any decision.

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